Peugeot 206 airdam
 

Here is a picture of the airdam under the bumper of a 2002 5-door Peugeot 206 (I believe that the 1994 Mazda 626 had something similar):http://ecomodder.com/forum/attachmen...0&d=1245495182
Notice that it doesn't extend the whole width of the bumper. Does this help or hurt FE? An airdam should span the width fo the bumper, maybe even wrapping around some, stopping air from going under the car and shoving it around the sides. In this case the extra airflow is directed straight onto the tires, increasing drag.
Would the car be better off without it?

Its most likely there to decrease drag. The my Paseo has the same thing on it.

I'm guessing it does help some. But it seems to me extending it to cover those front tires would help a lot.

Is the space under the front bumper but in front of the airdam open? If so it could be like my Pontiac. The lip airdam is used to push more air into the radiator to compensate for a smaller grille size.